If Ryan Madson and his agent, Scott Boras, get their way, the veteran reliever will not return to the Phillies in 2013. Boras said Sunday that Madson wants to remain a closer and that "a lot of teams have already expressed interest" in him in that role. That, of course, would erase Madson from the Phillies' plans because they already have Jonathan Papelbon in the closer's spot. Madson, 32, converted 32 of 34 saves in his only full season as the Phillies' closer in 2011 and hoped to cash in as a free agent last offseason.

FORT MYERS, Fla. - Cole Hamels' eyes widened and his forehead crinkled when he heard the news. "No," he said, drawing out the syllable in disbelief. Yes, he was told. Ryan Madson, a teammate of his for the previous six seasons, was scheduled to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery after tearing a ligament less than two months into his tenure with the Reds. The news is relevant to Hamels, not just because of the personal relationship and professional kinship that he and Madson share, but also because both pitchers are less than eight months away from the potential riches of free agency.

For six innings, the Phillies followed the script perfectly. They got ahead early. They got a solid start from their rookie pitcher. He handed the ball, and a two-run lead, to the supposed strength of the team - the bullpen. And that's where it all fell apart for the Phillies last night. Ryan Madson and Ugueth Urbina failed to hold the lead, and the Phillies lost the opener of a key three-game series with the New York Mets, 6-4, in front of a revved-up crowd of 36,505 at Shea Stadium.

Baseball announced its new five-year collective bargaining agreement Tuesday, and the ramifications for the Phillies were mostly positive. The new deal includes blood testing for human growth hormone (HGH) that is scheduled to begin in spring training next year. Major League Baseball will become the first North American professional league to test for HGH. Baseball already had testing in place for other performance-enhancing drugs. Testing positive a first time would result in a 50-game suspension, which is the same first-time penalty for other performance-enhancing substances.

Two veteran reporters have confirmed that they were let go from Action News . Denise James hasn't been seen on 6ABC since January, when she went on leave with a shoulder injury. She now says she is officially gone after 23 years at the station because her position was eliminated. She says she is teaching broadcast-news writing at Temple University and "living life. " James was honored Tuesday by the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists. Also gone is Lauren Wilson , the station's Delaware reporter and a 24-year veteran, who left the payroll in June.

On a night when ace Roy Halladay suffered a groin pull in the second inning and did not have his best stuff, the Phillies' bullpen came up big, yielding just one hit while getting five strikeouts and allowing no walks in three innings. Ryan Madson struck out the side in the eighth. Seventh inning Contreras 2/3 1 0 0 0 1 0.00 Romero 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0.

SAN DIEGO - Closer isn't the most relevant position on a last-place team. After all, his job requires that his team have a lead. But the odds say that the Phillies will have one of those at some point in the next week, and, at that point, Ryne Sandberg might treat the fan base to a glimpse at the future. While the manager has not detailed his plans for filling the void during the rest of Jonathan Papelbon's seven-game suspension for his crotch-grab on Sunday (he is eligible to return Tuesday in Miami)

TWO YEARS AGO this month, a lifelong Phillie hit the free-agent market. After testing the waters, he eventually returned to Philadelphia, as many people had expected. Despite mutual interest in continuing a similar relationship, Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said you shouldn't make the mistake of comparing the case of Carlos Ruiz to Jimmy Rollins' free agency in the fall of 2011. "I can assure you if it takes similar as long [to get a deal done], there will be very little chance of bringing Chooch back," Amaro said yesterday of Ruiz.

Money, money, money The Phillies have invested $70.5 million (as calculated by average annual value) in five pitchers for next season. That is more than what five teams spent in 2013 on their entire opening-day payrolls. Even with Roy Halladay's $20 million yearly salary off the books, their pitching investment is significant. Kyle Kendrick's expected $7 million salary through arbitration could push the number even higher before free agency opens. PLAYER 2014 SALARY (AAV)

And so we have arrived at another Roy Halladay start. At some point, his outings will cease receiving so much scrutiny and the hackneyed expression "it is what it is" will rule the day. Exactly how this developing story is going to end remains to be seen, but history suggests it is not going to end well for the two-time Cy Young Award winner. Oddly, this start Sunday afternoon against the Miami Marlins will be a bit of a defining one for the 35-year-old pitcher who threw a perfect game against the same franchise in 2010.

The recollection of playing on Phillies teams that galvanized Philadelphia still gives Ryan Madson chills. Nostalgia is a powerful elixir. Listening to former Phillies reminisce about nights at Citizens Bank Park offers a glimpse into what the kingdom was not long ago - and how it seemed to change so quickly. "What fueled us was the fact that in 2007 we kind of got to the playoffs and didn't go anywhere," Madson said from the Los Angeles Angels' spring training clubhouse in Tempe, Ariz.

NEW YORK - Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa are listed on the baseball Hall of Fame ballot for the first time, setting up an election sure to become a referendum on the Steroids Era. The 37-player ballot was announced Wednesday. More than 600 longtime members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America will vote through next month. Candidates need 75 percent for induction, and the results will be announced Jan. 9. Bonds is the all-time home run champion with 762 and won a record seven MVP awards.

THE NEW YORK Mets offered third baseman David Wright a contract extension of at least 7 years, sources told Newsday, of Long Island. The value of the proposal is believed to be worth somewhere in the range of $130 million. The Mets made re-signing Wright their top offseason priority. Wright, who turns 30 next month, would become a free agent after next season if an agreement isn't reached. "Imagine the Atlanta Braves without Chipper Jones," said teammate R.A. Dickey, who is also in the middle of contract talks.

If Ryan Madson and his agent, Scott Boras, get their way, the veteran reliever will not return to the Phillies in 2013. Boras said Sunday that Madson wants to remain a closer and that "a lot of teams have already expressed interest" in him in that role. That, of course, would erase Madson from the Phillies' plans because they already have Jonathan Papelbon in the closer's spot. Madson, 32, converted 32 of 34 saves in his only full season as the Phillies' closer in 2011 and hoped to cash in as a free agent last offseason.

Fourth in a series examining the Phillies' potential offseason moves. Chad Qualls is a name that will live in Philadelphia infamy. The righthander signed with the Phillies for $1.15 million last offseason, and the team decided he could serve as their eighth-inning bridge to newly acquired closer Jonathan Papelbon. Oops. Not such a bright idea. In fact, it was among the worst moves of Ruben Amaro Jr.'s four-season tenure as general manager. Qualls was traded July 1, but the Phillies' eighth-inning problems remained because Antonio Bastardo was unable to duplicate the eighth-inning success he had in 2011.